Folding box



y 4, 1965 R. K. GALLOWAY 3,181,771

FOLDING BOX Filed July 9, 1963 INVENTOR RWERT K. GALLOWAY ATTORNEY United States Patent "cc 3,181,771 FOLDING BOX Robert K. Galloway, Hoopeston, Ill., assignor to FMC Corporation, San Jose, Calif., a corporation of Delaware Filed July 9, 1963, Ser. No. 293,636 1 Claim. (Cl. 229-35) This invention relates to a box of the type that is formed by folding the wall members into interlocking engagement, and more particularly to improved means for preventing unfolding of the box before and while selected articles are being placed therein for containment.

The folding box of this invention is of the type having formed tabs on selected sides of the box interfittingly engaged with other sides of the resulting box which are provided with incisions or slits to receive the tabs in locking engagement. Prior art boxes have not served the purpose of maintaining their erected condition when used in connection with machines which transport the erected boxes to loading stations at which articles are deposited therein. It is, of course, evident that, if a box becomes unlocked and loses its erected condition while in the machine, the machine must be stopped until the unlocked box is removed or replaced with an erected box.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a new and improved folding box.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved folding box having selected marginal portions of formed tabs in abutting engagement with the edge of a slit formed in each wall of the box.

Another object of this invention is to provide a new and improved folding box having means for locking the side walls in erected position before the cover is closed.

Another object is to provide an improved corner construction for a corner lock carton.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective of a partially erected folding box constructed in accordance with the principles of this invention, showing the front and rear walls extending upwardly in position to receive the tabs formed on the side walls. 2

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary perspective of FIGURE 1 showing the tabs partially inserted in the incisions formed in the front and rear walls.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective of a corner of the erected folding box showing the position of the tabs when fully inserted in the incision.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary elevation of a portion of the front wall, showing the incisions in greater detail.

FIGURE 5 is a section taken along the line 5-5 of FIGURE 3.

The box of the present invention, generally indicated by the numeral 10, includes a bottom panel 12 defined by pairs of laterally spaced coextensive score-lines 14, 14 and 16, 16. Front and rear walls 18 and 20 respectively, of any desired dimensions, are moved to an upwardly extending position as shown, by bending the front and rear walls along the associated score-lines 14, 14. Side or end walls 22 and 24, left and right respectively as viewed in FIGURE 1, are also disposed upwardly, having'been bent along the associated score-lines 16, 16. In this manner the bottom panel 12 is surrounded by four upwardly extending walls having the vertical edges of wall-s 18 and 20 in abutting engagement with the end walls 22 and 24 to form a container of any suitable dimensions.

The score-lines 14, 14 have portions 14', 14 that extend across the end walls 22 and 24 and thus divide the end walls into central portions 26 and oppositely directed flaps or tabs 28 which extend laterally outwardly from the score-lines, 14', 14', as shown.

3,131,771 Patented May 4, 1965 The front wall 18 has a score-line 36 separating a lower body portion 18a from an upper flange 18b, while the erected position as hereinafter more particularly de-.

scribed. Formation of the desired box is, in part, accomplished by folding each of the tabs 28 about an axis defined by the score-lines 14', 14'. Each of the end Walls 22 and 24 have a score-line 32, parallel to the score-line 16, with the distance between the score-lines 16 and 32 defining the depth of the resulting box. Accordingly, a flap 34 is defined on each end wall above the score-line 32, and the two flaps 34 cooperate with the flap 18b of front Wall 18 to define a three-sided segmented flange.

The body portions 26 of the end walls are of the same height as the body portions 18a and20a of the front and rear walls 18 and 28. The cover 20b on rear wall 20 is actually the cover of the box and includes atop panel similar in size and shape to the bottom panel 12 and a flange that is hinged to the top panel and is arranged to lie close against the outside of the front wall 18 when the box is closed.

particularly, each incision includes a horizontal portion 42 and a vertical portion 44 intersecting the end of the horizontal portion remote from the ends of the walls 18 and 20 as shown. For purposes of description only, the upper portion of the incision 44 above the incision 42 is denoted by the numeral 46 and the lower portion below the incision 42 by the numeral 48. Each of the intersecting incisions 42 and 44 and imaginary datum lines AA and B-B (FIG. 4) define upper and lower flaps X and Y respectively. The upper flap X is bounded by the upper incision portion 46, the incision 42 and, the line AA.

The lower flap Y is bounded by the lower incision portion 48, the incision 42, and the line BB. For purposes hereinafter described, the flaps are deflectible during erection of the box with the lower flap remaining in a deflected position after the erection of the box has been accomplished.

Referring now to FIGURE 2, the end wall 24, with the tabs 28 folded about the score-lines 14' and 14', is shown folded about the associated score-line 16 in orderto erect the right side of the box 10. Such erection is accomplished by inserting the leading hook-shaped portions 30 into the incisions 44 by rotating the wall 24 about the associated score-line 16. Continued rotation of the wall to a vertical position (FIG. 3) causes the portion of the wall 18 immediately below the incision portion 48 to be received by the incision 33 and the upper rectilinear edge or margin 31 of the tab 28 to be disposed immediately below the downwardly facing edges 50 of the incisions 42, thus locking the tabs in the front wall. More particularly, as the hook-shaped portion of each tab 28 is inserted a sufficient distance into the incision 44, the upper and lower flaps X and Y are deflected inwardly substantially about axes coincident with the lines AA and B -'B respectively. Continued movement of the wall 24 and the associated tabs 28, to the positions shown in FIGURE 3, causes the upper margins 31 of the tabs to be located below the edge-s 50 thus permitting the upper flap X to return outwardly to a position overlying the upper margin 31 of the tab as seen in FIG. 5. This position of each upper flap X may be characterized as its latching position since,

in this position, the flaps X lock the tabs 28 to the front 3 and rear walls. When the tabs 28 at the four corners of the box have been locked by the flaps X, the walls are locked in upright position and cannot be inadvertently unlocked while articles are being placed in the b x.

It is to be noted that the horizontal incisions 42 are located on the score-lines 36 and 37. When the erected box has been filled with selected articles, the flange portion 18a of wall 18 and the cover 2% on rear wall 20 are folded downwardly to lie horizontally in a position overlying the upper marginal edges 31 of the tabs. Thus, when the box is closed and sealed, as by adhesive applied to the flange of the cover 20b and to the front wall 18, the cover panel is in the path of upward movement of the marginal edges 31 and prevents such movement.

It is to be appreciated that by providing the rectilinear edge 31 to be coplanar with the upper extremity of the erected box there is achieved the significant advantage of providing a relative large moment arm which resists forces which may accidentally cause unlocking or unfolding of one or more of the tabs 28.

While preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described, it should be noted that various modification may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

The invention having thus been described what is believed to be new and desired to be protected by Letters Patent is:

In a folding box having a bottom and integral upward- 1y extending walls, said walls having score lines adjacent their upper edges to form upper flaps, tabs extending outwardly from each of the vertical edges of one pair of opposite walls, each of said tabs having an upper edge in the plane of the score lines of said walls and a hook-shaped end portion, means defining incisions formed in the other pair of opposite walls for receiving said hook-shaped end portions of the tabs, each of said incisions including a substantially vertically extending incision extending across the associated score line and into the associated flap, and a substantially horizontally extending incision extending along the score line, said horizontal incision extending from the intersection of the associated vertical incision with the score line outwardly toward the One wall that carries the associated tab, said vertical and horizontal incisions defining upper and lower deflectable flap and wall portions, the initial insertions of said hook-shaped tab portions through the associated vertical incisions causing deflection of said flap and wall portions toward the interior of said box, continued movement of said tabs to their final position with the upper edges of the tabs aligned with the score line, causing return of the previously deflected flap portions to their non-deflected positions in the planes of their associated flap, the portions of the upper flaps that extend between said vertical incisions providing locking engagement with the upper edges of their respective tabs when the flaps are folded in along their score lines. 7

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,553,870 5/51 Samsing 229-- 2,718,999 9/55 Helrnick 229-35 2,809,776 10/57 Barington et al. 229-35 X 3,088,651 5/63 Rasmusson 22935 FRANKLIN T. GARRETT, Primary Examiner. 

